“The debt crisis dragged the euro zone into its second recession since 2009 in the third quarter despite modest growth in Germany and France, data showed on Thursday,” Robin Emmott and Michelle Martin report for Reuters. “The two leading economies both managed 0.2 percent growth in the July-to-September period. But the resilience could not save the austerity-hit 17-nation bloc from overall contraction as the likes of The Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Austria shrank.”

“Economic output in the euro zone fell 0.1 percent in the quarter, following a 0.2-percent drop in the second quarter,” Emmott and Martin report. “Those two quarters of contraction put the euro zone’s 9.4 trillion euro ($12 trillion) economy in recession, although Italy and Spain have been contracting for a year already and Greece is suffering an outright depression.”

Emmott and Martin report, “‘That was the last good number Germany for the time being,’ said Joerg Kraemer, chief economist at Commerzbank. ‘The business climate… has caved in.’ Most economists expect Germany to contract in the fourth quarter for the first time since the end of 2011. Where Germany goes, France is likely to follow and economists expect its economy to shrink in the October-to-December period… The Commission says the euro zone’s economies will be much healthier overall next year than in 2009, which was the nadir of bloated budgets when Greece’s fiscal deficit reached a record 15.6 percent and Ireland was not far off at 13.9 percent.”

Food stamps has no effect on the deficit but does increase spending helping the economy. 97% of food stamp recipients work full time but don’t make enough. Austerity and trickle down economics are a lie and a ruse used as an excuse for GOP to raid and privatize social security etc. Stop defending the rich who are the real food stamp queens with their farm and big oil subsidies in spite of record profits!!

The only thing is, no body asked exactly what is his plan is when it comes to America? Ruins?! No longer a World Leader? On equal with other nations? Cessation of the Middle Class and creation of the Mediocre Class? Welfare Nation? What is his plan?

The fall is not even over a month, it’s over a quarter. After the shock to the global business system in 2008 we’ll have see-sawing between growth and recession in most regions until equlibrium returns.

If there’s a plus point it’s that this follow-up recession is nowhere near as deep as the last one. Apart from Spain and Greece of course, where their governments’ austerity measures are amplifying the effects of the downturn.

If America really wants to ride this you’ll avoid making massive cuts or tax rises. Slow steps is the way forward, followed by cuts etc. once the economy is properly back on track.

It’s being caused by austerity programs, exactly the opposite of what is needed. Austerity is also exactly what Romney/Ryan and the Republicans in general are pushing for. Same for ConservaDems – a.k.a. Blue Dog, Blue Tick, DINOs.

How does this impact Apple? Poor consumer economics impact overall growth, and product selection within the population of customers.

Happiness and a reasonable life are more important than numbers.
Borrowing money is fantasy anyway – but its a fantasy that allows people to think that things are suddenly OK, and then they become so.
Future generations will be either (a) fine, or (b) not fine – it wont be decided by how much fantasy debt they have.

Sorry, you’re wrong. The reason austerity measures were needed was because those governments borrowed so much money that they couldn’t make the payments when revenues dropped. The U.S. is following suit thanks to Obama incurring $1 Trillion plus deficits EVERY YEAR. Pretty soon we won’t be able to service our debt, and we’ll have to cut deeply as well. That’s the problem with borrowing money to pay for programs which don’t generate any business activity, which then generates revenue in taxes. Obama showed he doesn’t understand this when he suggested businesses should take out loans to meet payroll, which no bank will ever do and which no sane business person would do either because you can’t create revenue that way to repay the loan.

Now Obama is going to raise taxes without cutting his out-of-control borrowing and spending. That’s a recipe for killing an already weak economy.

The real financial mess is due to Bill Clinton’s Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac decree to issue mortgages to anyone with a pulse, in a blatant attempt to shore up his political support among lower income voters. Then, the Bush economy did just fine for 6 years, until the democrats took control of congress for his last 2 years in office. Within 8 months of the dems taking control, the economy started into a tailspin. Then shameless Democrats used the collapse of the mortgage industry Clinton had created as their famous October Surprise to blame on Bush to get Oblabla into the White House.

Clinton left a surplus, Bush wasted it on nefarious schemes and nasty and pointless wars. All in the name of ‘safety’.
He spent 12 trillion. Who do you think has that money?
The answer is ‘the rich’, btw.

Watching the democrats and republcans blame each other is really quite entertaining. First the bullshit flies one way, then it flies the other way. But the bottom line is they both are wallowing in so much bullshit, they will have enough to fling at each other until the USA finishes circling the drain, which at the rate we are going will not be too far into the future.